The Redundant Past

Project Statement

The Redundant Past is a series exploring the physical leftovers of the communist bloc and the way they now shape and question their surroundings.

After the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 and the cold war ended, the old system was over. Yet most of its edifices were still in place: industries, government buildings, monuments, living areas, military compounds, ...

Some of these are still in use, a few are transformed, but many are now just abandoned - and probably will never be used again: either outdated, too damaged, over-sized, too symbolically loaded, or simply not fulfilling any purpose anymore.

The sole presence of these numerous large structures is an uncomfortable reminder of a time many would now like to forget. Much like ending the old system meant having to deal with a contentious political past, these structures had to be dealt with too, and in doing so became the concrete embodiment of the same issues: what to do with the past? Is there still something to take out of it or to re-use? Or must we throw it all away, demolish and forget?